[HISTORY: Adopted by the Borough Council of the Borough of Collegeville as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
[Adopted 2-3-1993 by Ord. No. 399 (Part 10, Ch. 1, Art. C, of the 1985 Code of Ordinances)]
A. 
Whereas, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania has enacted Act 98 of 1992 effective on September 7, 1992, amending the Insurance Company Law of 1921[1] to provide procedures for the payment of certain fire loss claims; and
[1]
Editor's Note: See 40 P.S. § 341 et seq.
B. 
Whereas, it is the purpose of said legislation to deter the commission of arson and related crimes, to discourage the abandonment of property, and to prevent urban blight and deterioration; and
C. 
Whereas, the Borough of Collegeville desires to adopt an ordinance pursuant to Section 508 of the Insurance Company Law of 1921 to provide for the payment of proceeds from certain fire loss claims to the municipality.
A. 
No insurance company, association or exchange (hereinafter the "insuring agent") doing business in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania shall pay a claim of a named insured for fire damage to a structure located within the Borough of Collegeville (hereinafter the "municipality") where the amount recoverable for the fire loss to the structure under all policies exceeds $5,000, unless the named insured or insuring agent is furnished by the Municipal Treasurer with a municipal certificate pursuant to Section 508(B) of Act 98 of 1992[1] and unless there is compliance with Section 508(C) and (D) of Act 98 of 1992[2] and the provisions of this article.
[1]
Editor's Note: See 40 P.S. § 638(b).
[2]
Editor's Note: See 40 P.S. § 638(c) and (d).
B. 
Where pursuant to Section 508(D)(1)(I) of Act 98 of 1992, the Municipal Treasurer issues a certificate indicating that there are no delinquent taxes, assessments, penalties or user charges against real property, the insuring agent shall pay the claim of the named insured; provided, however, that if the loss is agreed upon by the named insured and the insuring agent equals or exceeds 60% of the aggregate limits of liability on all fire policies covering the building restructure, the following procedures must be followed:
(1) 
The insuring agent shall transfer from the insurance proceeds to the designated officer of the municipality in the aggregate of $1,000 for each $20,000 of a claim and for each fraction of that amount of a claim, this section to be applied such that if the claim is $20,000 or less, the amount transferred to the municipality shall be $1,000; or
(2) 
If, at the time of a proof of loss agreed to between the named insured and the insuring agent, the named insured has submitted a contractor's signed estimate of the costs of removing, repairing or securing the building or other structure, the insuring agency shall transfer to the municipality from the insurance proceeds the amount specified in the estimate.
(3) 
The transfer of proceeds shall be on a prorate basis by all companies, associations or exchanges insuring the building or other structure.
(4) 
After the transfer, the named insured may submit a contractor's signed estimate of the costs of removing, repairing or securing the building or other structure, and the designated officer shall return the amount of the funds transferred to the municipality in excess of the estimate of the named insured, if the municipality has not commenced to remove, repair or secure the building or other structure.
(5) 
Upon receipt of proceeds under this section, the municipality shall do the following:
(a) 
The designated officer shall place the proceeds in the separate fund to be used solely as security against the total costs of removing, repairing, or securing the building or structure which are incurred by the municipality. Such costs shall include, without limitation, any engineering, legal or administrative costs incurred by the municipality in connection with such removal, repair or securing of the building or any proceedings related thereto; and
(b) 
It is the obligation of the insuring agent when transferring the proceeds to provide the municipality with the name and address of the named insured. Upon receipt of the transferred funds and the names and address of the named insured, the designated officer shall contact the named insured, certify that the proceeds have been received by the municipality and notify the insured that the procedures under this subsection shall be followed; and
(c) 
When repairs, removal or securing of the building or other structure have been completed in accordance with all applicable regulations and orders of the municipality and the required proof of such completion received by the designated officer, and if the municipality has not incurred any costs for repairs, removal or securing, the fund shall be returned to the named insured. If the municipality has incurred costs for repairs, removal or securing of the building or other structure, the cost shall be paid from the fund and if excess funds remain, the municipality shall transfer the remaining funds to the named insured; and
(d) 
To the extent that interest is earned on proceeds held by the municipality pursuant to this section, and not returned to the named insured, such interest shall belong to the municipality. To the extent that proceeds are returned to the named insured, interest earned on such proceeds shall be distributed to the named insured at the time that the proceeds are returned.
(6) 
Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit the ability of the municipality to recover any deficiency. Furthermore, nothing in this subsection shall be construed to prohibit the municipality and the named insured from entering into an agreement that permits the transfer of funds to the named insured of some other reasonable disposition of the damaged property has been negotiated.
Any owner of property, any named insured or any insuring agent who violates this article shall be subject to a penalty of up to $1,000 per violation.
The provisions of this article shall be severable and, if any of the provisions hereof shall be invalid or unenforceable, the remaining provisions shall remain in effect.
[Adopted 12-7-2005 by Ord. No. 517 (Part 10, Ch. 1, Art. D, of the 1985 Code of Ordinances)]
This article shall be known as the "Collegeville Borough Emergency Service Cost Reimbursement Ordinance."
A. 
Authority. Under Section 1202 of the Borough Code, 53 P.S. § 46202,[1] and the Hazardous Material Emergency Planning and Response Act, 35 P.S. § 6022.101 et seq., the Borough has the authority to make rules and regulations for the government of fire companies located within the Borough.
[1]
Editor's Note: See now 8 Pa.C.S.A. § 1202.
B. 
Findings. The Borough recognizes that the duties of volunteer fire companies require specialized emergency rescue tools and equipment, and hazardous abatement materials during emergency responses. The Borough recognizes that such tools and equipment place a financial burden on volunteer fire companies, and the replacement of such materials and specialized training add to the additional financial burden for volunteer fire companies.
C. 
Purpose. The purpose of this article is to grant the fire company operating in Collegeville Borough the authority to seek reimbursement for the reasonable cost of responding to such incidents, either directly or in coordination with the Borough's Office of Emergency Management, as provided below.
A. 
The Borough authorizes the Fire Department to recover the reasonable cost of emergency rescue tools, equipment, and materials; hazardous material abatement tools, equipment, and materials; and incurred third-party expenses involving any hazardous material, environmental, fire safety, and/or rescue incident or operation, including vehicular accidents.
B. 
The reasonable costs outlined above may be recovered directly by the Fire Department or through a third-party billing service as an authorized agent for the collection of such costs.
C. 
The Fire Department or third-party billing service shall only have the authority to recover the aforementioned costs from the applicable insurance company/carrier, or in the case of a self-insured corporate/partnership entity, from the corporation or partnership.
D. 
The reimbursement rates for the aforementioned tools, equipment, and materials shall be set by the Fire Department from time to time. These rates shall be approved by Collegeville Borough Council and shall be kept on file in the Borough Building.
E. 
In addition to the aforementioned reasonable costs, the Fire Department or third-party billing service shall be authorized to collect reasonable interest, as well as a reasonable administrative fee for collecting the same, and any and all additional fees as may be authorized by the Hazardous Material and Emergency Planning and Response Act[1] or authorized by any other statute or law.
[1]
Editor's Note: See 35 P.S. § 6022.101 et seq.
The Borough shall not be responsible for any aspect of the recovery of costs under this article. The Borough shall not take any steps to assist the Fire Department or any third-party billing service in recovery of costs under this article.
Any attempt by a Fire Department or third-party billing service to recover costs from any individual/entity other than the appropriate insurance company/carrier shall result in the immediate revocation of the authority to recover such costs granted under this article.